Adolescent
Decision-Making Inventory (ADI)
Adolescent Decision-Making
Questionnaire (ADMQ)
Behavior Inventory
General Decision
Making Style (GDMS)
Decision Making
Inventory (DMI)
Self Concept
Scale [Secondary Level]
Personal Skills
Map (PSM-A)
Family Decision-Making
Style Scale
Author(s): B.A. Clarke & S.S. Strauss
Date: 1988
Description: A semi-structured interview tool which is similar to a clinical interview. It elicits data about six elements of adolescent decision making: thinking patterns; risk-taking behavior; development of identity and personality boundaries; coping; goals and contingency planning; and interpersonal processes. Immature, transitional and mature patterns of decision making for each element are described. The tool has been expanded and revised based on interviews with 230 pregnant and parenting adolescents. A coding protocol has been developed. Interview questions are arranged in an order designed first to establish rapport with an adolescent.
Subscales: N/A
Literature References: Strauss, S.S., & Clarke, B.A. (1992). Decision making patterns in adolescent mothers. IMAGE: Journal of Nursing Scholarship, 24, 69-74.
Availability: Authors: Virginia Commonwealth University, School of Nursing, Box 567, Richmond, VA 23298
Cost: N/A
Target Audience: Pregnant and Parenting Adolescents
Psychometrics: None available
Advantages/Disadvantages: Requires 20-30 minutes to administer. Intended to capture the dynamic nature of the process of decision making.
Name: Adolescent Decision-Making Questionnaire (ADMQ)
Author(s): L. Mann, R. Harmoni, & C. Power
Date: 1989
Description: This 30-item, 4-point Likert self-report questionnaire measures self- confidence in decision making and four decision making (coping) styles. Based on Janis and Mann's (1977) conflict model of decision making.
Subscales: 5 subscales: self-confidence; vigilance; panic; evasive; complacency
Literature References: Friedman, I.A., & Mann, L. (1993). Coping patterns in adolescent decision making: An Israeli-Australian comparison. Journal of Adolescence, 16, 187-199.
Availability: L. Mann: Department of Organizational Behavior and Decision Making, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Vic. 3052
Cost: N/A
Target Audience: Adolescents
Psychometrics: Cronbach's alpha: vigilance, .73; panic, .70; evasiveness, .66; complacency, .73.
Advantages/Disadvantages: This instrument is widely mentioned and utilized in the literature on adolescent decision making. It was designed by leading scholars in the field of decision making.
Author(s): D. Jirby & J. Alters
Date: 1984
Description: This questionnaire was designed for Mathtech as part of a sex education program evaluation. It contains two parts: Part 1 (24 items): Behavioral skills; Part 2 (18 items): Comfort using skills. It was intended to measure frequency with which respondents actually use important skills in everyday life and the comfort respondents experience when using some of the skills. 6-point Likert-type format.
Subscales: Part 1: social decision making skills; sexual decision making skills; communication skills; assertiveness skills; birth control assertiveness skills. Part 2: Comfort engaging in social activities; comfort talking about sex; comfort talking about birth control; comfort expressing concern and caring; comfort being sexually assertive; comfort having current sex life; comfort getting and using birth control.
Literature Reference: Lock, S.E., & Vincent, M.L. (1995) Sexual decision making among rural adolescent females. Health Values, 19, 47-58.
Availability: ETR Associates, P.O. Box 1830, Santa Cruz, CA 95062-1830
Cost: $10.00
Target Audience: Adolescents
Psychometrics: Social decision making scale (6 items): Test-retest is .84; Cronbach's alpha is .58. Sexual decision making scale (4 items): Test-retest is .65; Cronbach's alpha is .61.
Advantages/Disadvantages: Entire questionnaire takes between 15-25 minutes to complete.
Name: General Decision Making Style (GDMS)
Author(s): S. Scott & R. Bruce
Date: 1995
Description: This instrument contains twenty-five, behaviorally phrased items measuring decision making style. 5-point Likert-type format.
Subscales: Five subscales: rational; intuitive; dependent; spontaneous; and avoidant.
Literature Reference: Scott, S.G., & Bruce, R.A. (1995). Decision making style: the development of a new measure. Educational and Psychological Measurements, 55, 818-831.
Availability: Scott-University of Colorado at Colorado Springs; Bruce - University of Louisville
Cost: N/A
Target Audience: Adults, but may be appropriate for some adolescents
Psychometrics: Face validity and logical content validity; alpha's from .68 to .94
Advantages/Disadvantages: Not designed particularly for adolescents.
Name: Decision Making Inventory (DMI)
Author(s): W.C. Coscarelli, R. Johnson, & J. Johnson
Date: 1983-1986
Description: This instrument is designed to assess an individual's preferred style of decision making. It was designed as a aid to help people understand how they make decisions. It contains 20 questions. 6-point Likert type format.
Subscales: Four subscales: Information gathering style (spontaneous, systematic) and Information processing style (internal, external)
Literature Reference: Coscarelli, W.C. (1983). Developing a decision making inventory assess Johnson's decision making styles. Measurement and Evaluation in Guidance, 16, 149-160.
Availability: Publisher: Marathon Consulting and Press.
Cost: $35 for complete kit including 25 inventories, 2 scoring grids, manual and scoring supplement; $28 for 50 scales.
Target Audience: High School and College students (Form H); working adults (Form I).
Psychometrics: Form H: Alpha coefficients range from .30 to .69; Form I: Alpha coefficients range from .34 to .73.
Advantages/Disadvantages: Quick, group administer - 10 minutes. Counselor is needed for interpretation and discussion with the respondent. Most useful as an inventory in a counseling setting.
Name: Self Concept Scale [Secondary Level]
Author(s): B. Percival
Date: 1980-82
Description: This instrument is designed to measure self concept in basic living skills. Contains a decision making subscale.
Subscale: Six subscales: decision making; interpersonal relationships; responsibility; citizenship, career planning, total.
Literature Reference:
Availability: Publisher: Dallas Educational Services
Cost: $35.80 for complete kit including manual, 35 pupil record forms and profile sheets; $35.75 for 50 pupil record forms/profile sheets; $3.85 per manual; $1.00 per pupil for machine scoring.
Target Audience: Grades 7-12.
Psychometrics: Not available
Advantages/Disadvantages: Quick, group administer - 15-20 minutes.
Name: Personal Skills Map (PSM-A)
Author(s): People Builders International, Inc.
Date: 1993
Description: This instrument offers a means for the positive self-assessment of intrapersonal skills, interpersonal skills, career/life management skills, stress management, and problematic behaviors.
Subscales: 14 subscales: self-esteem, growth motivation, change orientation; interpersonal assertion; interpersonal aggression; interpersonal deference; interpersonal awareness; empathy; drive strength; decision making; time management; sales orientation; commitment ethic; and stress management.
Literature Reference: Nelson, D.B., & Low, G.R. (1981). Personal Skills Map: A Positive Assessment of career/Life Effectiveness Skills: Manual. Corpus Christi, TX: Institute for the development of Human Resources.
Availability: Publisher: Chronicle Guidance Publications, Inc.
Cost: $125.00 per 10 personal skills maps.
Target Audience: Ages 13-19.
Psychometrics: Test-retest reliability coefficient range from .64 to .94 for the adult version. Not available for adolescent version.
Advantages/Disadvantages: Individual or group administration - 30 - 40 minutes. Intended for use in human development education, individual and group counseling, and consultation and training that focuses on personal growth as a skill-building process.
Name: Family Decision-Making Style Scale
Author(s): Epstein, J.L., & McPartland, J.M.
Date: 1984
Description: This instrument is a 12-item questionnaire containing 9 true-false and 3 multiple-choice items. It measures students' perceptions of their parents' practices regarding student inclusion/exclusion in family decisions, how much their parents trust them to make good decisions, how encouraging their parents are of the students' participation. Designed for use with two-parent families but can be adapted for use with one-parent families.
Subscales: None noted.
Literature Reference: Epstein, J.L. (1984). A longitudinal study of school and family effects on student development. Mednick, S.A., Harway, M., & Finello, K. (Eds). Handbook of Longitudinal Research. (Vol. 1). New York, NY: Praeger.
Availability: Authors. See Literature reference
Cost: N/A
Target Audience: Grade 4-12.
Psychometrics: None available.
Advantages/Disadvantages: Administration time is approximately 5-10 minutes.
Evaluation Tools Page
ENTRY DATE:: December 1998